by
Bob Dylan
- Record Label: Legacy Recordings
- Release Date: Oct 31, 2025
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Dec 31, 2025With 59 never having been previously released, and an excellent 124-page hardcover book tracks this period of Dylan’s history in meticulous detail. From a 1962 Montreal coffeehouse performance before a handful of people, to NYC club appearances and various apartment gatherings, the set brings into focus Dylan’s startling development as a songwriter and ascent among his peers.
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Classic Rock MagazineNov 14, 2025A vivid chronicle of his rapid ascent and growth as an artist, it captures the thrill of a young man finding his voice while making an indelible mark on history. .... A whole lotta Dylan for your dollar, and it's worth every cent. [Dec 2025, p.86]
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Oct 29, 2025There are highlights galore. .... A shiver goes through you when Dylan opens his November 1963 Carnegie Hall concert with the public debut of “The Times They Are A-Changin’”. Imagine hearing that for the first time. The entire show plays out over Discs 7 and 8. The setlist is incredible, his performance impeccable. [Dec 2025, p.38]
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MojoOct 29, 2025The parallel blossoming of a writer and performer climaxes in two discs of Dylan's October 26, 1963 show at Carnegie Hall, the apotheosis of the vibrating imagery and magnetic command of his breakthrough phase, where Ballad Of Hollis Brown is a demonic spell but in truth every damn song is a transcendence. Who needs electricity? [Dec 2025, p.92]
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Nov 10, 2025Through the Open Window: The Bootleg Series Vol. 18, 1956-1963 is an epic-scale document on how Bob Dylan became Bob Dylan, both as a persona and an artist, and the abundant audience recordings of his early gigs that appear here are a vital reminder that bringing a recording device to a concert is never a bad idea.
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Nov 3, 2025It’s a beautifully documented journey that manages to poke holes in the idea of Bob Dylan as an almost-mythical figure while also increasing our appreciation for his singularity as an artist.
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Oct 30, 2025It isn’t entirely comprehensive, lacking the fabled Witmark demos (which have already been collated in the Bootleg Series). What ‘Through The Open Window, 1956-1963’ supplies, though, is wonderful curatorial nous, one that gives it a palpable narrative thrust. You’re pulled through time to the streets of New York in the early 60s, and behind each door lies tantalising secrets.
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Oct 29, 2025An argument can now be made for the significance of Through the Open Window, because it's ground zero. Although large chunks of the material have circulated previously (as, well, bootlegs), the restorative sonic care and Wilentz's chronological contextualization is invaluable.
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Nov 7, 2025Through the Open Window reveals an artist trying to find his voice and then convincing others to listen to it.
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Nov 19, 2025With so much archival material now available (and Dylan so well covered in music, books, and film), it’s almost surprising that there’s still such valuable work left. Still, in shaping this set, the producers have developed a collection that works on multiple levels (including being simply fun) while adding significantly to Dylan scholarship.
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Oct 31, 2025Far from just a slice of history, this roughly thirty-five minutes simultaneously consolidates the creative metamorphosis that preceded it and reaffirms the continued relevance of Bob Dylan’s work.
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Oct 30, 2025Through The Open Window has, by necessity, a limited aperture – those inclined to do so will argue passionately over the merits of this take or that performance, officially or unofficially sourced, in forums where such discussions can be a bloodsport – but it nonetheless offers an expansive view of the many sides of Bob Dylan. [Dec 2025, p.93]
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Oct 29, 2025Compiled by Steve Berkowitz and Sean Wilentz, the massive box (also available in a two-disc distillation for Dylanologists on a budget) includes a certain amount of material already available on previous Bootleg Series editions and other Dylan compilations. But 48 of its cuts have never been heard by anyone other than collectors and Dylan’s gatekeepers, which lends added weight to its historic value.